EDMONTON, Alberta, April 29, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SNDL Inc. (NASDAQ: SNDL, CSE: SNDL) (“SNDL” or the “Company”) reported its financial and operational results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2026. All financial information in this press release is reported in millions of Canadian dollars unless otherwise indicated.

SNDL has also posted a supplemental investor presentation on its website, found at https://sndl.com.

The Company will hold a conference call and webcast presentation at 10:00 a.m. EDT (8:00 a.m. MDT) on Wednesday, April 29, 2026. The conference call details can be found below.

MANAGEMENT HIGHLIGHTS

• Net revenue for the first quarter of 2026 was $195.9 million, representing a -4.4% decrease compared with the same period of the prior year, driven by market headwinds in both Liquor and Cannabis segments.
  
• Gross profit of $52.8 million for the first quarter of 2026, represents a decline of $(3.8) million, or -6.8%, compared to the same period of the prior year, driven by lower revenue across all segments and inventory adjustments and one-time costs in Cannabis Operations.
  
• Gross margin ⁽¹⁾ of 27.0% in the first quarter of 2026 represents a reduction of -0.7% compared to the same period of the prior year, driven by Cannabis Operations, partially offset by margin expansion in both Liquor and Cannabis Retail segments.
  
• Operating Loss of $(9.1) million for the first quarter of 2026, representing an improvement of $2.9 million compared to the same period of the prior year, driven by the absence of prior-year equity-accounted investees valuation reductions and restructuring-related charges, which more than offset the decline in gross profit. Excluding restructuring-related charges, Adjusted Operating Loss totaled $(8.9) million in the first quarter of 2026, a $0.1 million improvement compared with the same period of the prior year.
  
• Cash flow was negative by $(26.7) million in the first quarter of 2026, partly driven by cash outflows of $9.6 million related to share repurchases, $6.6 million associated with changes in long-term investments, and a $2.9 million payment for the acquisition of five Cost Cannabis retail stores.
  
• Free cash flow ⁽¹⁾ was negative $(7.6) million in the first quarter of 2026, driven by income statement losses and inventory build-ups within Cannabis Operations.

“Beyond the normal seasonality that impacts the first quarter each year, Q1 2026 was particularly challenging, driven primarily by market softness across our business segments and operating territories,” said Zach George, Chief Executive Officer of SNDL. “While remaining focused on our strategic priorities and anticipating an improvement in the cannabis market in the second half of the year, we are not standing still. We are proactively adjusting our commercial execution and cost structure to reflect the reality of current market conditions.”

Some of the initiatives advanced during the first quarter include:

• Jeeter Contract: Ahead of the official April 2026 launch, SNDL assumed exclusive Canadian production and commercialization of Jeeter, a leading U.S. cannabis brand, enhancing its positioning in the premium pre-roll category.
• Profit-enhancement initiatives: In parallel with adjustments to commercial execution to mitigate softer market demand, the Company is deploying several initiatives expected to contribute approximately $20 million of incremental operating income over the remainder of the year.
• SunStream restructuring progress: As U.S. cannabis rescheduling gains momentum, the restructuring of the Parallel and Skymint investments continues to advance toward completion, with only a limited number of remaining requirements outstanding.
• Share buybacks: During the first quarter of 2026, the Company repurchased 4.5 million common shares for cancellation, bringing the total numbers of shares repurchased since the fourth quarter of 2024 to 15.1 million.

“With $213.4 million of unrestricted cash and no debt as of March 31, 2026, and exposure across the Canadian, U.S., and European markets, we are uniquely positioned to deploy capital across both organic and inorganic opportunities to further enhance our portfolio and accelerate growth. We are confident that, as current market conditions continue to challenge existing operators, attractive opportunities may emerge in the short to mid-term. More than ever, disciplined capital allocation remains a key priority for our management team, alongside continued execution on efficiency initiatives and profit-enhancement actions,” concluded Zach George.

TOTAL COMPANY HIGHLIGHTS

_{⁽¹⁾ Gross Margin is a supplementary financial measure calculated by dividing Gross Profit by Net Revenue. Adjusted operating income (loss) and Free Cash Flow are specified financial measures that do not have a standardized meanings prescribed by IFRS and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures reported by other companies. See “Non-IFRS Measures” section below for further information.}

BUSINESS SEGMENT HIGHLIGHTS

SNDL operates and reports its business through four segments: Liquor Retail, Cannabis Retail, Cannabis Operations, and Investments. Additionally, a consolidated total for Cannabis is presented, encompassing the combined results of the two Cannabis segments, along with the revenue elimination associated with the Cannabis Operations sales to the provincial boards that are expected to be subsequently repurchased by the Company’s licensed retail subsidiaries for resale. Corporate and shared service expenses are reported as “Corporate”.

_{⁽²⁾ In 2026, the Company began allocating applicable direct and indirect overhead costs from the corporate segment to each individual operating segment all categorized within general and administrative expenses. The Company has recast the comparative period to illustrate the impact of these allocations had they been done during the prior period, as documented in the condensed interim Financial Statements.}

Liquor Retail

SNDL is Canada's largest private sector liquor retailer, operating at April 28, 2026 in 167 locations, predominantly in Alberta, under its three retail banners: “Wine and Beyond” (15), “Liquor Depot” (19), and “Ace Liquor” (133).

• Net revenue for Liquor Retail continued to decline in the first quarter of 2026, as market demand softness persisted and impacted same-store sales⁽³⁾, which decreased by -6.1% in the period compared to the same period of the prior year.
• Operating income declined, driven by lower revenue, partially offset by gross margin improvements, including increased penetration of private-label offerings at accretive margins, as well as cost optimization and in-store productivity initiatives.

_{⁽³⁾ Same-store sales is a specified financial measure that does not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures used by other companies. See “Non-IFRS Measures” section below for further information.}

Cannabis Retail

SNDL is one of Canada’s?largest private-sector cannabis retailer, operating at April 28, 2026 in 193 locations under its three retail banners: “Value Buds” (127), “Spiritleaf” (61, of which 4 are corporate stores and 57 are franchise stores), and “Cost Cannabis” (5). The Company’s Cannabis Retail strategy is based on several pillars, including the quality of its store locations, its range of products, and the unique experiences provided to customers. Using data and insights from a large volume of monthly transactions enables SNDL to leverage technology and analytics to inform and improve its retail strategy.

• Net revenue for Cannabis Retail declined slightly in the first quarter compared with the same period of the prior year, driven by a same-store sales decline of -2.5%, partially offset by new store openings and Value Buds store conversions. New stores included the integration of five Cost Cannabis locations in Alberta and Saskatchewan.
• Operating income also declined slightly compared with the same period of the prior year due to $1 million of un-adjusted one-time charges incurred during the quarter, despite improvements in gross margin and SG&A cost efficiency. Gross margin expanded by one percentage point, supported by price increases, improved promotional effectiveness, and favorable product mix management.

Cannabis Operations

SNDL has a diverse brand portfolio from value to premium, emphasizing premium inhalable formats and a full suite of 2.0 products. With enhanced procurement capabilities and plans to continue evolving toward a cost-effective cultivation and manufacturing operation, the Cannabis Operations segment is a key enabler of SNDL’s vertical integration strategy.

• Cannabis Operations experienced a larger relative decline in revenue, driven by overall softening market demand, destocking activity, and temporary adjustments in business-to-business order phasing. These declines were partially offset by growth in international sales, which increased from $1.8 million in the first quarter of 2025 to $3.5 million in the first quarter of 2026.
• Operating income declined compared with the same period in the prior year, driven by gross margin compression and one-time, unadjusted charges. The gross margin decline was primarily attributable to inventory adjustments and under-absorption resulting from lower production volumes. One-time, unadjusted charges included an incremental write-down related to the idle Stellarton facility.

Investments

• As of March 31, 2026, the Company has deployed capital to a portfolio of cannabis-related investments with a carrying value of $410.1 million, including $395.4 million to SunStream Bancorp Inc. (“SunStream”). This carrying value was increased by $12.5 million during the first quarter of 2026, primarily due to an increase in the USD to CAD exchange rate from 1.3706 on December 31, 2025 to 1.3939 on March 31, 2026.
• The previously disclosed restructuring process relating to Skymint continues. On April 1, 2026, the Michigan Supreme Court has agreed to hear oral argument on applications for leave to appeal. The Court has not reached a decision on the merits. Timing and outcomes remain uncertain and are subject to court process and other factors.
• The previously disclosed restructuring process relating to Parallel continues. On February 4, 2025, the Florida Department of Health approved the transfer of Parallel’s license, representing an important milestone in completing Parallel’s restructuring process. In December 2025, a settlement was reached resolving the final remaining litigation, and SNDL currently expects the strict foreclosure process to close in Q3 2026, subject to completion of remaining steps, satisfaction of applicable conditions, and any required approvals.
• The investment portfolio generated a positive operating income of $2.0 million in the first quarter of 2026, primarily driven by interests earned from our cash accounts.
• On April 23, 2026, the DOJ and DEA issued an order placing FDA-approved cannabis products and state-regulated medical cannabis in Schedule III, while launching an expedited process to reschedule all cannabis from Schedule I. This move is expected to eliminate 280E tax burdens, expand research, improve regulation, and enhance access to capital, strengthening the industry outlook, with direct relevance to SNDL given its exposure to core US medical markets through its SunStream credit exposure.

Equity Position

• $623.6 million of unrestricted cash, marketable securities and investments, including investments in equity-accounted investees, and no outstanding debt at March 31, 2026, resulting in a net book value of $1.1 billion.
• The board of directors of the Company has approved the renewal of its share repurchase program upon the expiry on November 20, 2025.
• For the three months ended March 31, 2026, the Company purchased for cancellation 4,453,358 common shares at a weighted average price, excluding commissions, of US$1.56 per share. SNDL will continue to evaluate opportunities to utilize the program to the extent that management believes it is in the best interest of SNDL’s shareholders. As a reminder, since the fourth quarter of 2024 the Company has repurchased 15,055,627 common shares for cancellation.

This press release is intended to be read in conjunction with the Company’s condensed consolidated interim financial statements and the notes thereto for the three months ended March 31, 2026, and the accompanying Management’s Discussion and Analysis. These documents are available under the Company’s profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and EDGAR at www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml. 

CONFERENCE CALL

The Company will hold a conference call and webcast presentation at 10:00 a.m. EDT (8:00 a.m. MDT) on Wednesday, April 29, 2026.

WEBCAST ACCESS
To access the live webcast of the call, please visit the following link:
https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/9eyekwcv 

REPLAY

A replay of the webcast will be available at https://sndl.com/financials/quarterly-results/default.aspx

ABOUT SNDL INC. 

SNDL Inc. (NASDAQ: SNDL, CSE: SNDL), through its wholly owned subsidiaries, is one of the largest vertically integrated cannabis companies and the largest private-sector liquor and cannabis retailer in Canada, with retail banners that include Ace Liquor, Wine and Beyond, Liquor Depot, Value Buds, Spiritleaf and Cost Cannabis. With products available in licensed cannabis retail locations nationally, SNDL’s consumer-facing?cannabis brands include Top Leaf, Contraband, Palmetto, Bon Jak, La Plogue, Versus, Value Buds, Grasslands, Vacay, Pearls by Grön, No Future and Bhang Chocolate. SNDL's investment portfolio seeks to deploy strategic capital through direct and indirect investments and partnerships throughout the North American cannabis industry.?For more information, please visit www.sndl.com?

For more information: 
Tomas Bottger
Investor Relations, SNDL Inc. 
O: 1.587.327.2017 
E: investors@sndl.com

Forward-Looking Information Cautionary Statement?
This news release includes statements containing certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law ("forward-looking statements"), including, but not limited to, statements regarding the Company’s operational goals, plans and key priorities, the Company’s ability to deploy capital and the expected benefits thereof, expectations related to the Jeeter contract, the growth opportunities available to SNDL and the expected benefits thereof, expectations with respect to the 1CM transaction, including the satisfaction of certain regulatory approvals, the progress of the Sunstream restructurings, expectations with respect to the Skymint and Parallel restructuring processes, SNDL’s corporate restructuring program, including the timing to conclude the restructuring and expected benefits thereof, the expected benefits of the enterprise resource planning (“ERP”) system consolidation, SNDL’s ability to recover the senior secured notes held in Cannabist, the potential impact of reclassifying cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act, the Company’s retail strategy, and any other potential forms of shareholder value creation. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as “aim”, “anticipate”, “assume”, “believe”, “contemplate”, “continue”, “could”, “due”, “estimate”, “expect”, “goal”, “intend”, “may”, “objective”, “plan”, “predict”, “potential”, “positioned”, “pioneer”, “seek”, “should”, “target”, “will”, “would”, and other similar expressions that are predictions of or indicate future events and future trends, or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about the Company’s business and the industry in which it operates and management’s beliefs and assumptions and are not guarantees of future performance or development and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that are in some cases beyond its control. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are?made and?are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Please see “Risk Factors” in the?Company’s annual information form dated March 11, 2026, and the risk factors included in our other public disclosure documents for?a discussion of the material risk factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking information. The Company is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether?as a result of?new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law.?

NON-IFRS MEASURES

Certain specified financial measures in this news release are non-IFRS measures. These terms are not defined by IFRS and, therefore, may not be comparable to similar measures reported by other companies. These non-IFRS financial measures should not be considered in isolation or as an alternative for or superior to measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS.?These measures are presented and described in order to provide shareholders and potential investors with additional measures in understanding the Company’s operating results in the same manner as the management team.

ADJUSTED OPERATING INCOME (LOSS)
Adjusted operating income (loss) is a non-IFRS financial measure which the Company uses to evaluate its operating performance in a similar manner to its management team. The Company defines adjusted operating income (loss) as operating income (loss) less restructuring costs (recovery), goodwill and intangible asset impairments and asset impairments triggered by restructuring activities.

The following tables reconcile adjusted to un-adjusted operating income (loss) for the periods noted.

GROSS MARGIN
Gross margin is a supplementary financial measure calculated as gross profit divided by net revenue for the periods presented. This measure evaluates the underlying profitability of our operations and provides useful information about the Company’s ability to price products effectively, manage input costs, drive operating efficiencies, and compare results across periods and business segments

FREE CASH FLOW
Free cash flow is a non-IFRS financial measure which the Company uses to evaluate its financial performance, providing information which management believes to be useful in understanding and evaluating the Company’s ability to generate positive cash flows as it removes cash used for non-operational items. The Company defines free cash flow as the total change in cash and cash equivalents less cash used for common share repurchases, dividends (if any), changes to debt instruments, changes to long-term investments, net cash used for acquisitions plus cash provided by dispositions (if any).

The following table reconciles free cash flow to change in cash and cash equivalents for the periods noted.

SAME-STORE SALES
Same store sales is a non-IFRS financial measure which the Company uses to evaluate its financial performance in its retail segments. Same store sales provides information which management believes to be useful to investors, analysts and others in understanding and evaluating the Company’s sales trends excluding the effect of the opening and closure of stores.

Same store sales refers to the revenue generated by the Company’s existing retail locations during the current and prior comparison periods.

ADJUSTED EBITDA
Adjusted EBITDA is a non-IFRS financial measure which the Company uses to evaluate its operating performance. Adjusted EBITDA provides information to investors, analysts, and others to aid in understanding and evaluating the Company’s operating results. The Company defines adjusted EBITDA as net earnings (loss) before inventory and biological assets fair value and impairment adjustments, share of (gain) loss of equity-accounted investees, depreciation and amortization, share-based compensation expense, restructuring costs, asset impairment, gain or loss on disposal of property, other expenses, net, income tax expense (recovery) and excluding non-recurring items including ERP implementation costs and litigation settlements, net of recoveries.